Navy to Increase Fleet by 32 Ships

The Navy wants to increase its fleet to 313 ships by 2020, reversing years of decline in naval shipbuilding and adding dozens of warships designed to defeat emerging adversaries, The Chicago Tribune reports. The plan envisions a major shipbuilding program that would increase the 281-ship fleet by 32 vessels and cost more than $13 billion a year, $3 billion more than the current shipbuilding budget. According to the report, the Defense Department would have to trim costs in other areas to make the plan feasible. The Navy is planning to squeeze money from personnel and other accounts, and ask shipyards to hold down costs, even if it means removing certain capabilities. Source: The Chicago Tribune